Out of the Darkness
by Rainstorm03
Summary: Lara finds a reason to keep moving forward. (Sam x Lara) Takes place during and after the events of the game. Two-shot.
1. The Dark

**Been playing Tomb Raider (2013) non-stop since I got it. I am completely in love S.S. Endurance (Sam x Lara).**

**Takes place during the events of the game, after Lara returns to camp from retrieving Reyes' tools from the S.S. Endurance.**

**Haven't quite decided if I want to make this more than a one-shot.**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

The cold black water rushed up to meet the pale sand before retreating and repeating.

Standing on the beaches of a god-forsaken island, Lara couldn't help but find the dark skies and cold blackness of the ocean fitting scenery for all that's happened in the last few days. The countless lives she's taken, Grim, Roth, and now Alex. Tears well in her eyes at the mere thought of her friends, whom had all sacrificed themselves to protect her. And Roth…_oh god, Roth…_

_This is all my fault._

Here comes the self-loathing. She knows she should have left in search of the ancient tomb already. Questions needed to be answered. But she just needed to breathe. Her body and heart ached straight down to her core.

"Lara?"

The voice behind her startles her and makes her immediately want to grab for her bow, but the familiarity of the voice halts her.

_Sam._

Turning, Lara fakes a small smile towards the other girl. _Sam…I'm so thankful you're safe. I think I would've just given up and let them take me if something had happened to you._

"Sweetie…" Sam begins, concern evident across her features.

Lara's smile becomes more genuine at Sam's term of endearment for her. It has always made her heart flutter, and right then was no different, albeit the sorrow of the night weighed it down a tad.

_You keep me going, Sam. I would be lost without you. You are my light._

"Yeah?" Lara flicks her tongue carefully over her bruised and split lower lip. Memories of how that particular wound came into existence flashed before her mind's eye. The arrow, the Solarii rushing her, attacking her, Mathias, and then Sam, her Sam, they tried to take her Sam from her…

_"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. Just look at me … look at me, okay?"_

Wincing, Lara dropped her gaze, her eyes filling with hot tears once more.

_I'm pathetic…so weak. You deserve much better than me, Sam._

"Sweetie… Hey…" Sam cupped Lara's cheek in her hand, urging her to return her gaze back to her. "We're going to get through this, remember?"

All Lara could do was nod and fight the tears, those bloody awful tears, threatening to spill down her face and undo her. They stood like that for several minutes until Sam spoke.

"Uhm…Sweetie…Will you-…will you come and lay with me for a bit?"

Lara was taken off-guard, and flushed slightly at the thought of lying beside Sam. It wasn't like they hadn't done it before, but as of recently everything had been different. Her feelings towards her best friend had somewhere along the way shifted. She had always known she was attracted to Sam. But something in her had changed. She wanted now to be more than Sam's best friend. She wanted to be her everything.

Realizing she was in love with Sam had been like finding the missing piece of a long ago started puzzle. It all fit together perfectly. The sudden heat that arose in her when she stole glances at Sam changing in their dorm room and at their shared flat in London, the feeling she got when they'd cuddle together in her bed after rough nights, the intense jealousy (she could finally admit to herself that that was in fact what it was) she felt whenever Sam would run off with guys, it all made sense.

Despite all of this, Lara could never admit to anyone just how head-over-heels she was for her 'best friend'. The risk of losing Sam was too great. Losing Sam would mean losing everything, now more than ever.

"Sam…I really should go…The sooner I get answers, the sooner we can all- ," Lara swallowed the lump that appeared in her throat. "I-I mean _we_ can go home."

Sam furrowed her brow, hand still lingering on Lara's cheek, before glancing anxiously over her shoulder as if she was afraid someone was listening.

"Lara…I'm really scared. I feel if I close my eyes, I'll open them and those men…they'll be there, and they'll take me away from…" Sam's voice cracked, a haunted look filled her eyes. Turning her gaze from Lara, she continued. "And Whitman…" she then sighs. "Whitman's freaking me out. I feel like he's always staring at me, like I'm the prize of some sick game. I know you have to go, but maybe…could you just stay a few hours? Just enough so we can both get some rest. Don't you dare lie to me and tell me you're not tired and…and hurting."

Sam's eyes washed over Lara's battered, lithe frame, pausing for several moments on the gaping, gory tear in the fabric of Lara's shirt. Lara watched as Sam chewed her lip slightly, tears welling up in her eyes, as she gently reached out her other hand to cup Lara's hip.

Lara's heart broke slightly watching Sam fight back tears. It hurt to know Sam was hurting because of the wounds she has sustained since their arrival on Yamatai. Many of which she had received in her effort to rescue Sam. Lara knew they were all well worth it, none-the-less. Sam, her Sam, was here with her. Safe from the Solarii, safe from Mathias, safe from any ancient sun queens. And Lara pitied the man who tried to take Sam from her. She'd burn through the whole island to keep Sam safe.

"I-…" Lara attempted, but upon glancing at the look on Sam's face she knew she couldn't refuse. "Okay…Okay, just for a few hours."

Sam's body visibly relaxed, a small smile lifting her features. "Thank you, Sweetie."

Lara smiled then flushed slightly as Sam intertwined their fingers and led her back to camp.

Upon their return they received a mildly puzzled look from Jonah, but no comment. Reyes was too intent on the engine to pay them any heed.

"Ah! There you are my dear, I was wondering-" Dr. Whitman began but then noticed Lara. "Lara? I thought you had-"

"We're going to get a few hours of rest. Goodnight Dr. Whitman," Sam, rather curtly, cut him off and led Lara to the crumbing structure, scooping up a salvaged blanket along the way. All the while she clung tightly to Lara's hand like a lifeline.

Once safely inside the structure Lara helped Sam lay out the small blanket on a clear space of ground. It was a rather small blanket, and Lara felt herself blush as she realized they would have to cuddle closely if they were both to fit on it.

Avoiding Sam's gaze, Lara painstakingly lowered herself down upon the blanket, before shuffling to leave space for Sam. Glancing up to meet the other girl's eyes, she found Sam staring at her stomach wound.

"W-what is it?" Lara squirmed slightly, feeling herself growing self-conscious under Sam's stare.

Sam stood quietly for a second.

"Take off your shirt."

Lara couldn't believe her ears, a burning blush filling her cheeks.

"P-pardon?"

Sam knelt down, bringing her gaze up to meet Lara's. "Sweetie, I need you take off your shirt."

"W-why?"

Sam hesitated briefly. "Let me take care of you." Her eyes were so soft and caring; Lara couldn't help but melt a little. Briefly, it crossed her mind that she really didn't want Sam to know just how bad her wounds were, but in the end she knew arguing with Sam was pointless. Once Sam had something in her head, it was impossible to get it out.

Lara glanced around slightly to make sure they weren't being watched before giving a shy nod of reluctant approval. Lifting her arms over her head was rather painful due to puncture in her side, so Lara allowed Sam to assist her in removing the tattered tank top.

Once it was removed, Lara couldn't help but blush again as Sam examined the wounds littering her body.

"Oh Sweetie…" Lara's heart sank again as she watched Sam fight tears.

"It looks worse than it is…" Lara tried, only to receive an incredulous look from the other girl.

Sam let out a shaky breath and shook her head, before slipping a small first aid kit from her jacket pocket.

"Where did you-"

"Stole it while I was running out of their town."

Lara chuckled softly but didn't comment further.

Sam seemed to assess each wound carefully, attempting to figure out which wounds needed the immediate attention of the limited supplies of the small first aid kit, and which could wait until they were safely off the island. Mind made up, Sam half stood and shifted carefully so that she straddled Lara, their hips lining up perfectly.

"W-What are you doing?" Lara attempted to sit up, face burning bright red, before Sam's hand gently pressed her back down.

"The hole in your side needs to be cleaned, Sweetie. It already looks really bad." Sam said glancing sideways, seemingly to avoid Lara's gaze.

_She's blushing. Sam never blushes. Why is she blushing?_

Lara's mind raced as she watched Sam open the kit and retrieve a small bottle of disinfectant solution, gauze pads, and a roll of bandages.

Sam shyly lifted her gaze back up to meet Lara's.

"This uh…This is gonna hurt, Sweetie."

"I know."

With that, Sam cautiously went about attempting to clean the hole. As soon as Sam gently touched the wound though, as sharp whimper escaped Lara's lips and her body jerked and bolted straight up so that she was flush with Sam. Sam soothingly stroked a panting and shivering Lara's back, as they both fought tears threatening to spill.

The noise drew in a mildly annoyed Reyes; mildly annoyed, that is, until she saw the two of them sitting there, Sam straddling and holding a half-naked Lara. Reyes then had the most baffled and confused look that Lara had ever seen on her face. A blush once again filled Lara's cheeks as she tried to stutter out an explanation before Sam shushed her. Sam then merely glanced at the first aid kit and back at Reyes, her arms tightening protectively around Lara. Reyes gave a curt nod and then disappeared.

"Sweetie, I need you to try to be still while I do this."

"I know Sam, I'm trying," Lara's voice cracked ever so slightly as she spoke.

Sam furrowed her brow again and then slipped off the slim belt she was wearing and handed it Lara.

"Bite this."

Lara nodded and put the painted leather in her mouth, before lying back down.

Sam then went back to work, being as gentle as possible. It took her the whole bottle of solution, all the gauze pads, and the full bandage roll but she managed to get the wound cleaned and covered. By the time she was done though, Lara had tears streaming freely down her face and was out of breath from strangling screams.

"I'm so sorry, Sweetie," Sam bit her lip in an attempt not to start crying.

"It's okay," Lara felt like she'd been swallowing glass. Sitting up on her elbows, Lara linked her and Sam's fingers. "Thank you…really."

Sam offered a teary smile, and rested her forehead against Lara's. They sat like that for several minutes before Sam broke the silence.

"Listen, Sweetie…I've been meaning to tell you something for quite a while now," Sam drew a shaky breath and dropped her gaze. "I want to make sure I get it out, just in case…just in case something happens to one of us."

"Sam…"

"No, Lara, I-….I-…shit…" Sam let out an exasperated puff of air.

_She's blushing again._

Lara sat quietly, watching intently as Sam struggled with herself, trying to get out whatever she was trying to say.

Suddenly, Sam's eyes snapped up to meet Lara's. Lara trembled slightly at the intense look in them, and felt herself blushing just as brightly as Sam was.

"Fuck it."

And with that, Sam pushed her lips against Lara's.

Lara's eyes widened. She couldn't believe this was happening. After all these years of wanting her, suddenly the girl of her dreams, her best friend, her Sam, was _kissing _her. It was the most wonderful feeling.

But as suddenly as it began, Sam was pulling away and turning to get off her, blushing and apologizing profusely.

Lara panicked, Sam had thought she hadn't wanted it.

"W-wait!" Lara caught Sam by the belt loops, pulling her firmly back down to her lap, causing Sam let out a soft yelp. Shyly locking her gaze with Sam's, Lara felt the blush creep back into her face and down her neck. She went to speak, but instead shook her head, and pushed her lips back into Sam's.

Sam gasped against Lara's mouth, but was quick to respond. Sam deepened the kiss, snaking her arms around Lara's neck, as Lara wound her arms around Sam's waist, pulling her flush against her. Lara couldn't help but let out a tiny whimper as Sam dominated her mouth with her tongue. Kissing Sam was like heaven. She could already feel the pain of the last few days slipping away, her mind filled with nothing but Sam. It was like Sam was healing her with her kiss.

After what seemed like a lifetime, the two pulled away, panting and blushing.

"I'm in love with you," Sam mumbled so softly Lara almost didn't catch it.

Lara's breath caught in her throat, eyes welling with tears again. Burying her face in Sam's neck, Lara wrapped her arms a bit tighter around the other girl's waist.

"I'm in love with you too."

Sam let out a breath, before giving a small relieved laugh.

The two continued to sit like that until Sam moved to lie next to Lara.

"We should rest. _You _should rest."

Lara nodded, but pulled Sam half on top of her, so that her head rested on her shoulder. Sam laughed softly, as Lara once again wound her arms around her, pulling her as close as possible.

"I'm not going anywhere, Sweetie."

"I-I know, I just…"

"I know, Sweetie. It's okay."

Lara stared at the sky through a break in the roof of the small structure. It didn't quite seem as dark anymore. Small bits of starlight seemed to have exploded across it, small lights fighting through the darkness. Lara smiled to herself.

"Sam?"

"Yeah, Sweetie?"

"I-I love you."

Lara could feel Sam's lips curve into a smile against her neck. Sam pressed a firm kiss into the pulse point on Lara's neck, causing her to shiver, before replying.

"I love you too."

Lara let a smile fall across her face again, before exhaustion over took her, and peaceful sleep claimed her.

* * *

Lara woke several hours later to dull aches and her Sam completely entangled with her. It made her feel better knowing she was safe in her arms. At some point after Lara had fallen asleep, Sam had removed her jacket and had covered them both to the best of her ability.

_Probably a good thing too. I didn't replace my shirt after she cleaned my wound. If someone had come in here to check on us and seen us lying cuddled together, me without a shirt, they would have thought that we had been…ugh…_

Lara felt herself blushing again, her already fuzzy mind becoming even foggier as she looked down at the gorgeous face of her companion. The thought of them doing _that_ made Lara's breath quicken and her body get hot. She had had far too many dreams about it for images _not _ to flash in front of her mind's eye.

Shaking her head in an attempt to push those thoughts and the burning blush away, Lara reluctantly untangled herself from Sam. Sam let out a small whimper due to the loss of contact but, thankfully, did not wake. Lara stared at her for a few minutes, taking in that she was now hers, her Sam. She no longer needed to hide how much she loved the other girl. It felt wonderful knowing that Sam was in love with her too.

Standing and stretching slightly, Lara smiled, as the freshly bandaged wound felt better than it had all night. She would have to remember to thank Sam when she returned. She had done wonders.

Bending to place a soft kiss on Sam's temple, Lara replaced the tattered remains of her shirt and walked out into the open air of the night. Reyes was waking Jonah for his shift of watch, and Whitman appeared to be sleeping under a makeshift lean-to covered with a shredded blue tarp near the camp fire. Stealing one last glance at her Sam, Lara made her way to a sleepy looking Jonah.

"Little Bird, are you feeling better?"

"Much better. Sam really fixed me up." Lara smiled at him, then couldn't stop the red that filled her cheeks. _That might have sounded bad. Maybe just to me…_

Jonah just smiled knowingly. "That's good to hear. Are you heading out now?"

"Yes, I know that the answers I'm looking for are in that tomb. They have to be."

"Alright. Be safe Little Bird. Sam won't be too happy if you get hurt any worse out there."

"I know," Lara hesitated slightly, glancing over her shoulder. "Jonah…can you watch over her for me? I'm worried about her. And Whitman…I don't trust him and neither should you."

"Little Bird…"

"Jonah…just please. Take care of her."

"Alright. Just hurry back, Lara."

With that Lara started off in the direction of the ancient tomb that held the answers to getting off this island. As she passed the makeshift shelter her love lay sleeping in, she hesitated, her eyes lingering on the slight frame that rose and fell as she breathed.

_I'm going to get us out of this Sam. I promise._

Tearing her eyes from her light, her Sam, Lara pushed forward, back into the darkness.

* * *

**I have some ideas that I could turn into a second chapter that would take place after the events of the game but I'm still unsure if I should do so. Please let me know what you think! Hope you enjoyed it!**


	2. The Light

**So I did a second chapter. Yay :]**

**This one has some darker themes mentioned in it, so be warned, but I promise it's not as dark as it appears in the beginning.**

**Sam's eyes look like a silver-ish color to me. So that's what I'm going with. Also, I really wanted Sam to call Lara "baby" at some point in this but for some reason I just couldn't work it in and not make it sound awkward-ish. So there's that.**

**Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed. They made my day reading them.**

* * *

_Darkness. _

_Sam stood surrounded in nothing but pitch black. She could feel nothing, hear nothing, and see nothing. Everything had just disappeared._

_Fighting to remember where exactly she was, Sam began to recall the events that had transpired._

_There was…the beach. And Lara…Oh God, Lara._

"Lara?!" _Sam called out into the nothingness, or at least she thought she did. There was no answer._

_Sam could remember leading Lara from the beach to the crumbling structure. She could remember cleaning the hole in Lara's side, and then…and then kissing her. At first she had thought Lara hadn't wanted it, that she had made a fool out of herself, but then Lara has kissed her back. It had been like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. Then she could remember lying with Lara, holding Lara in her arms. And then she woke up and Lara was gone. And there was gunfire and panic and confusion, and she had cried out for Lara, but she didn't come. And Whitman! He had said he was leading her to safety, but he had brought her straight to Mathias. Mathias had told his men to guard her and they had forced her to take off her clothes…and…and…_

_A wave of nausea overwhelmed her, making her dizzy and even more disorientated. She felt as if she was being pulled apart at the seams._

_"Stop fighting. It will all be over soon." A voice in Japanese spoke, seemingly inside her head._

_Letting go sounded nice. She was sore and tired, and she just wanted it all to stop._

"SAM!"

_Suddenly, Lara's voice pierced the darkness. Sam searched for her love, but the pure nothingness remained._

"Lara?" _Her voice sounded like a hoarse whisper in the void._

"Sam, please! Please don't give up!"

_Sam struggled to move her body. Lara sounded as if she was in pain and scared. Sam needed to find her. What if those men, those horrible men, were hurting her? What if they…_

"Sam, please! Stay with me! I need you!"

_A blinding light of dazzling blues and white suddenly exploded into her vision. Squinting against it, Sam forced herself to try to see what lay just beyond. Standing in the light stood a figure with a slight frame. A woman._

"Lara?"

"_Give up. Your friend can't help you. She will be dead soon as well." The Japanese voice in her head returned. The woman stood perfectly still in the light, looking down at her. Sam couldn't see her face, but knew who she was. The figure was Himiko._

"You hurt her and I will destroy you!" _Sam could feel her body shaking with rage. She couldn't…wouldn't let anything happen to Lara. She'd die first. After all Lara had gone through to save her, the least she could do was protect her from this false god, this woman that stood before her. She had to stay strong for Lara._

_"You cannot fight me. Give up now."_

"No!"

_Sam could feel herself growing weaker. Everything had begun to blur and swirl before her eyes. She felt so exhausted…everything began to fade. _

_"You cannot fight me."_

"Sam! I love you! SAM!"

_Suddenly the blinding light began to flicker and the figure let out a piercing scream. The light flickered once more, and then everything disappeared._

_Then there was nothing._

* * *

Sam jerked and sat up with a start. Taking in her surroundings, she saw she was in a sterile white room. Monotonous beeping was the only sound besides her own heartbeat, which seemed to be louder than thunder.

Memories suddenly came flooding back to her. They had escaped. Lara had saved her. They had been picked up by a large ship and brought to Tokyo. She was in a hospital. She must have fallen asleep.

Sam's body shivered violently. She'd been having that same nightmare since they had left Yamatai, each time waking up in a cold sweat. Rubbing her face with shaking hands, Sam swung her legs off the hospital bed and set her feet down on the cold floor. Glancing down at the watch on her wrist, Lara's watch, she read that it was 4:25 in the morning. Sighing, she stood, the weight causing her to grimace. Lara had been in surgery for what seemed like a whole day. Maybe she was out now and she could see her.

When they had arrived at the hospital, Sam had to practically be forced to leave Lara's side so that they could receive the medical attention they both needed. After Lara had collapsed on the ship, Sam refused to let her leave her sight, unless absolutely necessary. She needed to know her love was going to be alright. They'd come too far, in more ways than one, for Lara not to make it. Even now, the anxiety of not being right next to Lara was making her a nervous wreck.

Limping out of the room, Sam braced herself on the wall as she sought out any of the hospital staff. She needed to find someone who knew how Lara was doing. She was going crazy not knowing. After a few tediously painful steps, a nurse rounded the corner and saw Sam.

"_What are you doing? You should be resting. Your ankle is too badly sprained for you to be putting that much weight on it._"The nurse spoke in Japanese, while quickly moving to help Sam stand and keep weight off her ankle.

"_Please. My…friend, Lara Croft. I just need to know she's okay._"

The nurse paused in thought for a few moments.

"_Ms. Croft has been out of surgery for a few hours, but she hasn't woken yet. The surgery went smoothly, and she's expected to make a full recovery._"

Sam let out a breath she didn't know she had been holding.

"_I need to see her._"

The nurse frowned, and shook her head. "_You both need to be resting-"_

"_Please…Please, I just need to see her. I need to see that she's okay._"Sam cut her off, fighting the tears welling in her eyes.

The nurse stared at Sam for a few moments, and then sighed and shook her head, leading Sam back to her room. "_Let me talk to the doctor, and see if we can arrange that you both stay in the same room. In the meantime, you need to rest. I will be back shortly."_ With that, the nurse turned and left.

Sam sighed and sat gingerly back down on the bed. As she waited, her nerves got the better of her. She began to alternate between toying with Lara's favorite necklace that hung around her neck and picking at the bandages that covered her arms. When they had first left the island, she had scrubbed so hard at the blue markings that covered her body that she had torn open her skin. She had managed to remove all but the large, cyan blue star on her left shoulder. She had reluctantly left it alone, due to Lara begging her to stop because she was hurting herself. Luckily the navy blue scrubs she wore covered her shoulders so no one could see it.

The minutes seemed to drag by, and Sam was half tempted to begin pacing, but, thankfully, the door opened to reveal the nurse from earlier, accompanied by a second nurse with a wheelchair.

"_The doctor has agreed to allow you two to stay in the same room on the condition that you allow Ms. Croft to rest. She is still very weak, and rest is crucial to her recovery._"

Sam nodded quickly and allowed the second nurse to assist her into the wheel chair. As she was wheeled down the hall, Sam turned to look at the first nurse, whose name tag read Tomoe in kanji.

"_Thank you, Tomoe. This means more than you know. Thank you._"

The nurse merely looked up from the chart she was carrying, smiled, and nodded to Sam.

"_Ms. Croft's room is right up here._"

The second nurse wheeled her into a room to their left. As soon as the door opened, Sam saw Lara. She couldn't help the tears that spilled down her face at the sight of the other girl.

Lara was bandaged practically from head to toe. Multiple wires and tubes stuck out from various points on her body. Sam had never seen her look so…broken. None the less, the many monitors she was hooked up to showed that she was alive. The beeping meant her heart was still beating. As of right then, that was more than Sam could have asked for.

After she was helped into the second bed in the room, Sam waited until both the nurses left, before once more struggling to her feet. Wincing with each step, Sam made her way over to Lara, before carefully climbing into the bed with her love.

"Lara…" Sam's voice was barely above a whisper. Curling into the unconscious girl similar to how Lara had curled into her the night she had kissed her, Sam carefully rested her hand over Lara's heart. The gentle beating she felt beneath her finger was soothing in so many ways.

"I love you so much."

Sam buried her face into Lara's neck, protectively draping her arm across Lara's body. With Lara safe in her arms, the heart monitor and the sound of her love's breathing lulled her to sleep.

* * *

_"Sam!"_

_Lara fought her way through what seemed to be a hundred men to reach her love. The dazzling blue and white light rushed into Sam's body like a raging rapid. She knew it was only a matter of time before the ancient sun queen's soul completed its transfer to Sam's body. She needed to hurry, otherwise she'd lose her. She'd lose her Sam forever._

_Pushing her body to do what should have been impossible, Lara hurdled over the gaps in the path being formed by the immense power tearing the whole mountain apart. She could hear Mathias chanting for Himiko to awaken. Time was running out._

_"Oh, Sam!...Please hold on!"_

_At last, she met what she believed was the last obstacle: a giant storm guard oni, standing several feet over her head. Cowering slightly as the beast took out several men with one swing of its deadly club, Lara began to fire everything she had into the oni as it advanced. Dodging and scrambling to avoid its hits, she was able to out-maneuver the towering creature enough to begin pumping lead into its back. The creature roared in pain as it collapsed to its knees. Seizing the opportunity, Lara caught it by the helmet, stumbling slightly as she ripped it off its head. The storm guard oni began to struggle back to its feet, but Lara was too fast for it. Lunging at the beast, she swung her climbing axe as hard as her aching body would allow. The axe struck true, straight into the creatures head. The creature let out a lone rumbling moan before finally collapsing._

_Retrieving her axe from the fallen creature's skull, Lara pushed herself to run to where Sam was suspended in air. Drawing back her bow, she took her aim, lining her arrow up with the ancient sun queen's heart._

_"SAM!"_

_ As she went to fire, a bullet rang out, knocking to bow from her hands. Before she could defend herself, Mathias tackled her and they both rolled to the ground. As she struggled against the man she managed to free her climbing axe from its clip on her belt. Pulling the axe and her arm free, Lara struck the axe into Mathias' back. Jerking back, and in the process ripping the axe free from his back, the man screamed out in pain and stumbled backwards. Pushing her aching body to its feet, Lara scooped up the gun she had given to Sam and removed her own from its holster. As Mathias started back towards her, she unloaded both guns into him, pushing him back until he stumbled backward off the cliff, screaming as he fell._

_Lara's vision blurred as she dropped the guns, and stumbled over to where her bow had fallen. Scooping the fallen weapon up, she replaced the arrow on the notch and drew back._

_Suddenly everything stopped. The blinding light disappeared, and the world seemed to have gone completely silent. What had happened?_

_Lara could feel her breath catch in her throat as she watched Sam slowly being lowered back to the ground. Standing perfectly still, bow still drawn, Lara watched as Sam, with her eyes closed, turned to face her. The markings on her arms and face seemed to glow eerily against her alabaster skin, making Lara shiver._

_Then "Sam's" eyes flew open. Lara gasped and took a step back._

_"No…"_

_"Sam" smirked, her ice blue eyes glowing brightly. Sam was gone. In her place was Himiko, the first and last sun queen. The transfer was complete._

_Lara was too late._

_"NO!" _

_Lara let the arrow fly. It struck Himiko in the chest, causing her to scream out in agony and anger. Before the sun queen could retaliate, another arrow crashed into her._

_Lara began to advance, sending arrow after arrow flying at Himiko. She kept going, hot tears falling down her face, until she found herself standing over the fallen body of her best friend, the girl she loved. As the woman lay bleeding through the wounds the many arrows had created, her eyes faded from the icy blue glow to the dark silver that they always had been._

_"Sam?" Lara's voice cracked sharply as she bit back a sob._

_"Swee…tie…I'm…proud of you."_

_Sam smiled up at Lara before releasing one last breath, her head rolling slightly to the side._

_"No…no, no, no, no! NO! SAM!"_

_Lara fell to her knees, clutching her chest in agony, before crying out in pure anguish._

_Crawling on her knees to Sam, she pulled the other girl into her arms and sobbed into her._

_"Sam please…Come back to me…I need you…please…I love you." Lara whimpered as she clung to the other girl._

_She didn't know how long she sat there and cried, covered in the blood of her fallen best friend. She could've been there hours or days. Either way it didn't matter. She had lost everything. The last person she truly loved lay dead in her arms. She had killed her._

_Slowly, the young woman stood, allowing the other girl to fall softly off her lap to the snow-covered ground. Glancing around she saw a fallen pistol, partially covered in snow. Stumbling over to the weapon, she lifted it and checked the magazine. One bullet left._

_Turning to look one last time at her Sam, Lara slowly brought the cold gun to her head._

_"Forgive me…I love you."_

* * *

"SAM!"

Lara bolted up, struggling against the weight that pressed against her chest.

"LET GO OF ME! SAM! SAM!" Lara flailed, fighting with everything she had until she heard someone fearfully cry her name.

Slowing her struggle slightly to take in her surrounding, Lara took note that she was no longer outside, but in a white room filled with many monitors and charts lining the walls. A hospital?

Turning back to see what was holding her down, her eyes locked with two teary, dark silver eyes. _Sam._

"Sweetie?" Sam's voice cracked slightly as she looked down at Lara from her position straddling Lara's lithe frame.

Sam let out a small squeak as Lara, fairly roughly, yanked her into her arms. Recovering from her shock, Sam wrapped her arms around Lara's neck and sobbed softly into the other girl's neck.

"I-It's okay, Sweetie. We're safe now. It's over."

"Sam…oh, god Sam…I…I thought I lost you." Lara tightened her hold on Sam's waist, tears rolling freely down her face.

Pulling back, Lara caught Sam by the back of her neck and pulled her into a deep kiss. Lara could feel the other girl's body trembling as she quickly reciprocated the searing kiss with fervor. Pulling back slightly, Lara began to kiss wherever she could reach, trailing kisses from Sam's jawline down her neck. She felt Sam's fingers clench into the flimsy hospital gown she wore, pulling her flush against her.

Suddenly, the door to the hospital room flew open, and two nurses appeared. When the two saw Sam and Lara, both of their jaws dropped slightly. Lara felt her cheeks get very hot. Glancing up at Sam, Lara caught sight of the "doe-in-the-headlights" look Sam wore and had to bite back a giggle.

After a few awkward seconds, one of the nurses snapped out of her shock and barked to the other nurse something in Japanese, causing the other nurse to quickly turn and walk out the door. Lara assumed she was going to get the doctor.

The remaining nurse turned back to Sam and raised her eyebrow, before saying something in a questioning manner that caused Sam to blush brightly. Lara wasn't quite fluent in Japanese, but she knew the nurse had used the word "_tomodachi_", meaning "friend" in Japanese. Sam must have told the nurse that Lara was her friend and now the nurse was calling her out on it. Lara couldn't hold back the giggle this time.

The nurse then said something that caused Sam to scramble off of Lara. While the nurse came over to inspect her, Lara gave Sam a questioning look.

Sam cleared her throat, her face still adorably red, before answering. "She said the doctor is going to be in shortly, and that if I wanted to stay in here with you, it probably wasn't a good idea for him to see us…like _that_."

Lara just grinned and shook her head.

Within a few minutes, the doctor came into the room and began checking charts and asking questions to the nurse. After receiving the answers he apparently was looking for, he turned to Lara and spoke to her in English.

"Ms. Croft, it is good to see you're finally awake. You had us worried for a while. How are you feeling?"

Lara glanced out of the corner of her eye to see Sam being led to sit down in a chair next to Lara's bed. "Much better than I did the last time I was conscious."

The doctor chuckled. "Oh, I would most certainly assume so. It is a good thing your friend over there thought to clean and dress that puncture wound on your side. You might not have made it if she hadn't."

"She takes good care of me." Lara smiled at Sam, who blushed and began to fidget.

The doctor checked Lara over thoroughly before speaking to the nurse, who nodded, turned, and left. He then turned to Sam.

"Ms. Nishimura, how are you feeling?"

Sam offered a small smile and shrugged. "Fine, I guess."

"How are your back and ribs?" Lara watched as Sam visibly tensed. "Are they still as tender as they were earlier?"

Sam's eyes shifted nervously from Lara back to the doctor. Lara frowned. _Her ribs and back?_ She knew about her ankle and her arms, but she hadn't known anything about her ribs and back…

"They're fine." Sam said quickly, avoiding Lara's gaze.

The doctor raised an eyebrow, his gaze shifting from Sam to Lara and back again. He obviously didn't quite believe her, but he didn't push any further. He asked the two a few more questions before leaving. The nurse returned a few moments later, fixed Lara's IV's and then left, giving Sam a slightly scolding look as she passed that seemed to say, "_I don't care what you do, just don't let me catch you doing it_."

Sam let out sigh as she watched the nurse leave, rubbing the back of her neck awkwardly in a way that Lara found so endearing. Lara chuckled slightly at the other girl.

Sam turned back to Lara and placed her hands on her hips. "What?"

'"Oh, nothing."

Sam narrowed her eyes, before shaking her head and hobbling back to Lara's bed. Scooting over to make room for her, Lara pulled Sam back into her arms to lay beside her. Sam curled into her side and rested her head on her shoulder.

"So where are Jonah and Reyes?"

"They were released a few hours after they arrived here. They went to a hotel for the night."

"Ah."

They laid in comfortable silence for several moments before Lara's concern got the better of her.

"Sam?"

"Yeah?"

"What happened to your back and ribs?"

Sam tensed in Lara's arms, lying perfectly still for several moments before sitting up, and resting her chin on her bent knees.

"Sam?" Lara sat up as far as she could without the pain becoming too excruciating, a concerned look falling across her face.

When Sam didn't say anything, Lara slowly lifted the scrub top Sam was wearing to reveal her back.

Lara couldn't restrain her gasp when she saw what was hiding under the shirt. All down Sam's side was a huge black and red bruise, starting from about the middle of her rib cage and trailing all the way down to just above her hip. In the middle of her back, also in black and deep red, was a large bruise in the shape of a boot print, so well defined that the treads of the boot were visible on her skin.

"S-Sam!" Lara looked up in shock at Sam, who was staring over her shoulder at her.

"It looks worse than it is." Sam offered a small smile, repeating the words that Lara had told her about her puncture wound.

"I-….I mean…How?" Lara stuttered, her eyes filling with tears as she gently brushed her fingers over the dark bruises. She could feel Sam's muscles twitch and her body flinch as she did so.

Sam sat quietly for several long moments again, her face turned away from Lara. When she spoke, her voice was barely above a whisper. Lara didn't even have to see her face to know she was crying.

"After Whitman had taken me back to Mathias, Mathias had left me with several of his guards, so that he could finish "preparations", or whatever. Well…one of his orders was to force me to change into that ceremonial dress…" Sam paused for a few minutes as if trying to keep her cool as she recounted the events. "The guard that was in charge, he…made me take my clothes off and…uh…"

Lara suddenly felt as if she couldn't breathe, nausea overwhelming her. Looking at Sam's face, she saw she was blushing feverishly, tears rolling down her cheeks. Lara felt so much anger all of a sudden she couldn't see straight, but at the same time she felt as if her heart had been crushed into thousands of pieces.

"Oh god…Sam…please…please tell me he didn't…he didn't…"

Sam quickly turned to face her.

"He didn't."

Lara felt a wave of relief, as if the air had suddenly been put back into her lungs. As quickly as it came though, the relief quickly dissipated. Gently wrapping her arms around Sam's trembling form, pulling her back against her chest and into her lap, Lara waited patiently for her love to speak again.

"He…uh…He kept going on about how he hadn't seem a woman in years. Then he tried to make me d-dance for him…I-I refused so he knocked me down a stomped on me. T-Then he started kicking me…"

Lara squeezed her eyes shut and buried her face into the back of Sam's neck, arms tightening protectively around the other girl. She couldn't fight the tremors of anger that ran through her body. She wanted to make those bastards pay for what they did to her Sam. She hated all of them with all of her being. "Oh, love…"

Sam glanced at Lara over her shoulder again. She was blushing again, but this time for a different reason.

"L-love?"

Lara snapped her head up. A blush filled up her face as she attempted to apologize. She had just figured since Sam had a pet name for her, that she could have one for her as well. Maybe she had chosen wrongly.

"No, I like it." Sam smiled at the other girl over her shoulder. Then her blush darkened a bit. "I-It sounds really sexy coming out of your mouth. Your accent…It just…"

Lara gave Sam a crooked grin. "Love…" She whispered huskily in Sam's ear, and then chuckled as she felt the other girl shiver in her arms. Then something occurred to her. "Sam…what happened to the man?"

Sam paused for a few seconds. "Mathias came in and found him kicking me. He didn't even hesitate. He just shot him in the head. Then, like nothing happened, he walked away and sent another guard in."

Both girls went silent for several moments.

"I'm so sorry, Sam. This is all my fault."

Sam suddenly turned herself in Lara's arms so quickly that Lara squeaked in surprise.

"Don't you ever say that again."

"W-what?"

Sam shifted so that she was once again straddling Lara. _We seem to keep ending up in this position…_

Sam looked Lara directly in the eye as she spoke. "Sweetie, nothing that happened to us on that fucking island was your fault. You saved us, me, Jonah, and Reyes, and nearly died doing so!"

"But-"

"No, Lara, no buts. If it hadn't been for you I wouldn't be here right now."

"If it weren't for me we would never had been there in the first place!"

"You're not the one who sank the ship, Lara! You had no control over that!"

"Yeah, but-"

"No! No buts. I would've been lost without you!"

Lara opened her mouth to say something, but Sam interrupted her once more.

"Lara, I'm in love with you. And I know who you are. You're not a killer. None of this was your fault. None of this." Sam had a fierceness in her eyes that made Lara tremble slightly.

Lara sighed and leaned her forehead against Sam's. Squeezing her eyes shut to fight the tears, she laced their hands together.

"I'm in love with you too."

Tilting her head up, Lara pressed her lips into Sam's once more. It was a brief kiss, but the emotion it held said everything else they needed to say.

Pulling back, both sighed contently. Sam shifted to replace herself next to Lara, curling into her side. Lara moved her arms to wrap around her protectively. She felt herself growing increasingly drowsy and was about to fall asleep when Sam suddenly spoke.

"So where are we going next?"

"Pardon?" Lara was mildly baffled but trying not to show it. _How did she know…_

"I know you better than you think I do, Sweetie. What grand adventure are we going off to next? And don't you even think about telling me I can't come because 'it's too dangerous.' I'm coming anyway, and there's not a damn thing you can do to stop me."

Lara couldn't help but grin. That was her Sam. So incredibly stubborn. And Sam knew she had Lara wrapped around her finger. Still, the thought of Sam getting hurt made her extremely nervous, but she knew there was nothing she could do to change Sam's mind.

"I was thinking Croatia, Love."

Sam shivered again, smirking in to Lara's neck. Returning the favor, she pushed a kiss into Lara's pulse point, nipping ever so slightly. Lara blushed and shivered in response.

"Sounds like fun. I'll get my camera."

Lara chuckled. _Her and that bloody camera._

"Sam?"

"Yeah, Sweetie?"

"I love you."

Sam snuggled closer to her. "I love you too."

The pair lay contently with each other until finally drifting into a peaceful sleep, safe in each other's arms.

* * *

**Hope you enjoyed it! Please let me know what you think!**


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